Cornelius vanderbilt



PATBNTED JAN; 5,1904.

o. VANDERBILT.

RAILWAY GAR.

APPLICATION FILED FERRO. 1903.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1 N0 MODEL.

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, `PATBMED JAN.- 5, 1904. 0,. VANDBRBILT. RAILWAY mlm APPLICATION FILEDFEB.20, 1903.

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No MoDEL No, 748,395. y PATENT EDJAN.'5,1904. avmDBRB-ILT.

RAILWAY GAR.

APPLIOATIoN FILED 11:13.20, 190s.

No MODEL. asHEB'rs-SHBBTB.

UNITED Y,STATES Patented January 5, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

RAILWAY-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 748,895, dated January5, 1904.

Application filed February 20, 1903.' Serial No. 144,204. (No model.)

To all wiz/0m it may corr/cern.- l

Beit known that I, CORNELIUSl VANDER- BILT, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of the borough of Manhattan, city and State ofNew York, (having a post-office address at 100 Broadway, in said boroughof Manhattan,) have invented Improvements in Railway-Cars, of which thefollowing is a full and true description.

My invention relates to railway-cars, and has for its object theproduction of a light, strong,rand serviceable car.

Although I have shown my improvements as embodied in a car having aninclined or hopper bottom, I do not desire to limit myself to such, asobviously certain of my improvements may be used with other forms ofcar, as gondola cars, box-cars, Snc.

My invention consists of the features hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the drawings which accompany this specication, Figure 1 is a plan,partly in section, of a portion of the car. Fig. 2 is a side elevation,partly in central section,rof a por 'sills rolled-metal angles, likewiseof commercial size. The beams 4 may be rolled-metal angles. They arepreferably secured at their centers to the center sill by means of akneebrace 4"', and at their ends to the side sills 2 by braces l1. Thesills 1 and 2 are vfurther braced and united oy the arched floor-beams5. These beams may be composed either of a single piece of metal bentinto the desired shape or they may be made of two separate straightpieces, as shown. I prefer that these beams shall be of ianged metal, asshown, in order to obtain the greatest strength with the least weight.The beams 5 are shown as being secured at their ends to the beams 4 byplates 8, their centers being supported by aends of the beams may besecured directly to the sides sills 2,1iffdesired. A desirablearrangement is to place two of, the beams 5 side by side and secure theplate 6 between zthem. (See Fig. 2.) Thelower portion of the plate 6 issecured to the sill 1, preferably :by the knee-braces 7. It will beobserved that the beam 5, together with the beam 4, forms a truss inwhich the plate 6, together with the center sill 1, acts as a strut.This truss braces and unites the center and side sills and serves as asupport for the floor-plates 9, which are 'laid upon the beams 5. Theinner edges of the door-plates are preferably bent upward and abutagainst each other, forming a vertical longitudinal ridge. The outeredges of the floor-plates may be bent downward and secured to the sills2, as shown.

The sides of the car comprise plate-girders supported by posts 10, whichare secured to the ends of the bolsters. (See Fig. These plate-girdersare composed of the flanged top rails 12, wall-plates 14, forming thewebs of the plategirders, and the lianged rails or beams 13. Additionalposts 10 are applied to the said girders between the holsters, beingsecured at their lower ends to the beams 4 by rivets passing through thesaid posts, floorplates 9, side sills 2, and kneebraces 1'1. These postsact as stiffeners for the plategirder sides. It is evident that theplate-v girder sides will carry a considerable portion of the weight ofthe load and transmit the same to the ends of the holsters.

In order that the car may be self-dumping, the side wall-platesterminate at the rails 13, leaving large openings in the sides of thecar ybetween the rails 13 and sills 2. These openings are normallyclosed by doors l5, which are hinged upon and depend from a longitudinalhorizontal axis. This axis is Vpreferably supported by brackes 16,secured to the rail 13, as shown, though it is obvious that the saidaxis may be supported directly from the posts 10, if desired. The Vdoorsmay be held in a closed position by any suitable means, as by bolts 17.When the bolts are raised, the weight of the load causes the doors toswing open and the load slides ont.

The bolster 3 consists, preferably, of a casting having a web 3a and acontinuous marginal iiange 3b. The center bearing 3c and side bearings3d depend from the said ange. Directly above the center and sidebearings IDO are vertical strengthening-anges 3e and 3f. The upperportion of the bolster-ange 3b is preferably riveted to the bottom webof the center sill l and the end portions through the side sills andHoor-plates to the posts 10.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. In a car, a plate-girder side, and a door hinged to the tensionmember of said plategirder, said tension member being situatedintermediate the top and bottom of the carbody, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a car, a plate-girder side, and a door hinged on a longitudinalaxis and in its closed position depending from said plate-girder,substantially as described.

3. In a car, body-holsters, postssecured to the ends thereof, and a sideframe comprising longitudinal top, bottom and intermediate memberssecured to said posts, substantially as described.

4. In a car, body-holsters, posts secured to the en ds thereof, a sideframe comprising longitudinal top, bottom and intermediate memberssecured to said posts, and a door hinged to said intermediate member ona longitudinal axis, and depending from said intermediate member,substantially as described.

5. In a car, body-holsters, upright posts secured thereto, a railsecured to said posts intermediate their height, and a door hinged on alongitudinal axis and in its closed position depending therefrom,substantially as described.

6. In a car, transverse bolster-beams, up-

right posts secured to the ends thereof, an intermediate member securedto said posts, and a door hinged on, and in its closed positiondepending from, said intermediate member.

7. In a car, an arched door-beam, a transverse beam secured to the endsthereof, and a center sill between and secured to said arched floor-beamand said transverse beam, substantially as described.

8. In a car, a center sill, a support secured thereto, and an archedfloor-beam having its apex secured to said support, substantially asdescribed.

9. In a metallic car-frame, a center sill, a support secured thereto,and an arched iioorbeam having a depending ange and secured at its apexto said support, substantially as described.

10. In a car, a anged center sill, a bolsterbeam secured to the lowerflange of said sill, said beam comprising a web, a continuous marginalflange and a center bearing depending from said ange, substantially asdescribed.

ll. In a car, a center sill, a bolster-beam secured thereto andcomprising a web, a continuous marginal liange, a center bearingdepending from said iiange, and a vertical flange connecting the upperand lower portions of said marginal flange directly above said centerbearing, substantially as described.

l2. In a car, acenter sill, a support secured thereto, and parallelarched floor-beams secured to opposite faces ofsaid support,substantially as described.

13. In a car,\a transverse beam, a longitudinal side sill in the samehorizontal plane as said beam, a Hoor-plate having its outer edge bentdown parallel to said sill, an upright post, and means for securing saidpost, door-plate and sill to the end of said transverse beam, t

substantially as described.

I4. In a car, a body-bolster, a side sill, a floor-plate having itsouter edge bent down parallel to said sill, an upright post, and meansfor securing said post, floor-plate and sill to the end of saidbody-bolster, substantially as described.

l5. In a car, transverse trusses below the door-level and longitudinalside trusses above the floor-level, the vertical members of the sidetrusses extending below said side trusses, and being secured to the endsof said trans- Verse trusses, substantially as described.

16. In a car, a longitudinal, upright, plategirder side comprising acompression and a laterally-liangcd tension member situated entirelyabove the floor-level, and vertical posts which depend below the saidtension member, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name this 19th day ofFebruary, 1903.

CORNELIUS VANDERBILT.

In presence of- JAMES J. CosGRovE, DELos HOLDEN.

